Russian Missile Forces to Field New Heavy Missile by 2020 â€“Commander

Russian Missile Forces to Field New Heavy Missile by 2020 â€“ Commander

MOSCOW, December 17 (RIA Novosti) â€“ Russiaâ€™s Strategic Missile Force will deploy a new heavy intercontinental ballistic missile no later than 2020, its commander said on Tuesday.
â€œWe are counting on introducing into the armory by 2018-2020 at the outside a new missile system with specifications not inferior to its predecessor,â€ Lt. Gen. Sergei Karakaev said.
The new silo-based Sarmat ICBM will replace the worldâ€™s most powerful nuclear missile, the twenty-five-year-old R-36M2 (SS-18 Satan).Sarmat is expected to feature advanced countermeasures to enable it to penetrate missile defenses including a complex command and control system and a high degree of maneuverability, he said.
The new system is just one of a number that will totally replace Soviet-era missiles by 2021, he said.
â€œNew hardware is arriving on time and by 2018 more than 80 percent of Russiaâ€™s strategic missile force will be comprised of the latest weapons,â€ Karakaev said.
By 2018, Russian nuclear forces will be limited to 1,550 warheads and 700 total deployed strategic nuclear delivery systems including long-range missiles and bombers as part of the New START treaty signed with the United States in 2011.
Karakaev called that number â€œnecessary and sufficientâ€ to maintain strategic nuclear parity with the US and other nuclear states.
Commenting on the United Statesâ€™ nuclear arsenal, Karakaev claimed â€œtheir reduction in numbers is compensated for by upgrades of their missiles and the delivery systems of the entire strategic triad, giving them new technological capabilities.â€
The new missiles are part of a $700 billion procurement plan for the Russian Armed Forces in the period to 2020.